Freight Traffic And Routing - Icing Stations, Yards, Priority Trains, Piggyback Autos, Oil Train

Regular And Emergency Icing Stations

I was rather surprised that there were not more icing stations listed in what official documentation I could find.

As a preface to specific locations, a Regular Icing Station, as defined by my 1926 "Lists of Officers, Stations, Agents, Etc." is " a station, so designated by carrier, which is equipped and located so as to insure proper icing service of refrigerator cars, also where the icing of through shipments is regularly performed."

However, an Emergency Icing Station is defined as "a station...which is not equipped or located to take care of the regular icing of refrigerator cars, but
where an ice supply is procurable and refrigerator cars can, in cases of emergency, or by special arrangements, be iced subject to delay."

Have you thought of including an icing platform for your steam-era or early diesel reefer operations?

Thus, if you're interested in modeling true to prototype and want to include an icing platform, here are the locations of icing stations in 1926:

Regular Icing Stations
Afton, OK (Only for NB traffic from Southwestern to Northern Divisions)
Birmingham, AL
Ft. Smith, AR
Harvard, AR
Kansas City, MO
Monett, MO
Oklahoma City, OK
St. Louis, MO
Sapulpa, OK
Sherman, TX
Springfield, MO
Wichita, KS

Emergency Icing Stations
Ada, OK
Afton, OK (Except NB traffic from Southwestern to Northern Divisions)
Amory, MS
Cape Girardeau, MO
Chaffee, MO
Dallas, TX
Enid, OK
Fayetteville, AR
Ft. Scott, KS
Ft. Worth, TX
Holdenville, OK
Hugo, OK
Joplin, MO
Lawton, OK
Memphis, TN
Paris, TX
Pittsburg, KS
Rogers, AR
Thayer, MO
Tulsa, OK
Willow Springs, MO

Of course, there's always the option of including an icing station regardless, but if the location you are modeling does NOT include an icing station, you can always use that extra room for something else. In my case, omitting the emergency icing station at Chaffee will allow for more room for locomotive servicing facilities, since my layout design includes a narrow, shelf-style layout.

As always, if anyone has pictures of Frisco icing operations, I would be interested in seeing them posted to the Resource Center.

So, ice down those reefers and Ship IT on the Frisco!

 

Freight Yards - Switch Engine Shifts Per Day and Yard Car Capacities

From 1955 Frisco company data:

 

CTB-QLA-BTX Company Brochure

CTB-QLA-BTX Company Brochure. I left off the front/back illustrations since they do not lend any specifics on the operation of the trains themselves.

My personal collection.

 

Piggyback Automobile Transport Trailers In Piggy-back Service - Chrysler Plant - Fenton, MO - 1959

Piggyback auto transport from 1959. Chrysler Plant in Fenton, MO.

Frisco Transportation Company (FTC) loaded automobile transport trailers in piggy-back service on 86' Trailer Train (TTX) flat cars.

Published in the Frisco Museum's "All Aboard" magazine. Posted with permission.

 

These must have been concept cars if the photos were taken in 1955. They are all '58 models.

 

I already pointed this out to Chris, but since Don mentioned the cars, Trailer Train:

a) didn't exist until the very end of 1955, and

b) didn't have any 85 foot flatcars until 1959.

Also, I thought the cars looked more like 1959 Plymouths.

Paul

 

The cars are '59's and the trailers belong to "Auto Convoy".

In my book "American Car Haulers" I have illustrated a photo of these same units being unloaded.

"Piggybacking" of auto trailers began in 59 and ended in the mid-60's.

Bi- and tri-level automobile racks made piggybacking automobiles in trailers on flat cars (TOFC) service obsolete, but took years to phase in nationwide.

 

The Chrysler Fenton Plant started production in September 1959.

TOFC began on the Frisco in 1955.

Frisco started experimenting with the tri-level in 1959, but, as the picture indicates hauled autos piggyback style for several years.

 

Frisco Folks:

Many thanks for the clarifications.

Unfortunately my 1950s-era knowledge is not terribly strong, and I'm quite ignorant on my older car model years.

I have not had time to dig out the old museum article and see if the date was printed inaccurately or if it was my own blasted fault for not proofreading properly.

Regardless, I appreciate the efforts to make sure that the information is correct!

 

Wartime Oil Train, Southeastern Jct., Headed Down River Division - March 1943

Folks:

Reference William Barham's, courtesy Don Wirth, photo of a Frisco Oil Train at SE Jct. in March, 1943, heading down the River Division.

Curiosity has gotten the best of me. Operationally, I'd always assumed that (1) most oil hauled on the Frisco came from Oklahoma and Texas, and (2) any oil bound for the Frisco's southeastern ports (Pensacola and Mobile via AT&N) would have been routed to Springfield and then to Memphis.

So, what is an oil train of this length doing heading south on the River Division?

My best guess is that this oil could have been bound for Chaffee, at which point various cars may have been destined for individual oil companies throughout the River Division by way of local trains.

Or, is there an alternative?

I know I've read and heard of some interesting freight routing that seems to defy logic. Perhaps this is another instance.

I'd bee very pleased if anyone has the insight to enlighten me.

I'm just glad that there's at least documented evidence allowing me to possibly model a string of tanks on the River Division!

Regards,

Chris Abernathy
Columbia MO
(Modeling the Frisco's River Division in HO-Scale c. 1943)

 

Does anyone know where there might be a photo of the Ft Smith icing station or any photo of Frisco's icing station?

Googled it and got hotel ads. Haha

Also, what is the spacing for line poles beside the ROW?

Joe

 

See http://www.frisco.org/shipit/index.php?threads/telegraph-pole-spacing-standard.1290/#post-59495

 

Since the Eastern Division was glutted with trains of oil moving from Oklahoma to St Louis, I believe the Frisco was routing the return empties via the River Division to Turrell, Arkansas and then to Springfield in order to keep things moving smoothly, and the extra time returning was of little consequence.

Nothing slows traffic like opposing direction traffic.

Ken McElreath

 

Could this be finished products coming from the Wood River Refinery?

Just a thought; the refinery was built in 1917.

FRED

 

The Shell refinery was the one I was thinking about.

I knew there were others, but I toured the Shell refinery with the St. Louis ASME.

I thought I was going to tour one of the other refineries when they had a tour of the Conoco-Phillips refinery, but it ended up being the same one.